Funding for major West Midlands projects allocated and it will bring 'real change'
Two key West Midlands sites aimed at creating thousands of new jobs have had funding allocated to get them off the ground.
The £16 million cash, part of the West Midlands Investment Zone, will help establish Birmingham Knowledge Quarter and Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor as employment hubs for advanced manufacturing, green industries, health-tech and digital technologies.
As well as bringing in billions in investment, the projects will eventually create more than 23,000 jobs.
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Early-stage preparations will now begin as part of a long-term plan that will use the funding to clean up land and make significant improvements to infrastructure to help attract investors and businesses looking to relocate.
This is the second major Investment Zone announcement following confirmation last month of £23 million to help deliver a battery manufacturing and technology hub at the Coventry and Warwick Gigapark, another Investment Zone site.
Mayor Richard Parker said: "Our Investment Zone has the potential to deliver £5.5 billion of investment and create 30,000 jobs in the region.
"It is essential that we develop these sites, attracting investors and growing industries, to reignite the economic growth this region has long been waiting for.
"In less than a year I've secured £40 million to get these sites out of the starting blocks.
"That's how I'm driving our economy to the next level and bringing real and lasting change for people living right across the West Midlands."
The three Investment Zone sites will each benefit from a range of direct funding secured by the Mayor and in some cases tax incentives.
In addition to the new jobs and investment, around £1.5 billion of business rates over the zone's 25-year lifespan will also be retained and reinvested in the region instead of going back into government coffers.
Birmingham Knowledge Quarter runs northeast from the Birmingham City and Aston universities through Duddeston and Nechells to Aston.
The Quarter will offer tax incentives, business rates retention and receive £9m investment for public realm works and active travel infrastructure to help attract investment.
The Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor will create new green industries and skills through a partnership between the city council and university with £7m investment for land remediation and key infrastructure.
The Coventry-Warwick Gigapark at Coventry Airport. Anchored by a new battery gigafactory and associated businesses and technologies, the site will get tax incentives, business rates retention and £23m investment for land remediation, infrastructure and connection to power grids.
Councillor Sharon Thompson, deputy leader at Birmingham City Council, said: "The Knowledge Quarter will be a world-class, city-centre innovation cluster focused on science, technology and enterprise that will deliver an estimated 20,000 jobs and a 4,000 home 'eco-town' - with over a third of those homes being affordable.
"This is great news for the city, and this part of Birmingham, providing much-needed investment, jobs, skills, homes and infrastructure."
And Councillor Chris Burden, City of Wolverhampton Council cabinet member for city development, jobs and skills, said: "The Green Innovation Corridor will build on the city's strengths in high value manufacturing, green technologies, digital innovation, brownfield land regeneration and sustainable construction to create new, quality jobs and support businesses.
"The West Midlands Investment Zone funding and status will help us deliver key sites in Wolverhampton and engage in region-wide business support, skills and recruitment programmes to ensure that local people benefit from the opportunities created."
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